The “Bell of the Ball”

 

Omscaler is digging away at the 0-6-0 shifter rebuild. What we have just completed as of this writing is why I think of this as more like “micro-engineering”. As you readers may have already guessed, the locomotive bell was just fabricated. It is small. The bell proper has a maximum width of one sixteenth of an inch and the height is three sixty-fourths of an inch. And boy was it fun to make! It is not perfect but it is a major improvement. We had to search online for a reference picture which now resides in the equipment file for later use as well. This lets us move forward with the rest of the rebuild. The frame is done including coupler boxes and wheels. Cross head guide is ready to install as well as steam cylinders. We need to make domes, stack, smokebox door, cab, air pump, air reservoir. Am I leaving something out? Still digging, omscaler

 

Pondering and working

As omscaler types this, glue is drying on the 0-6-0 shifter frame upgrade. Another part, the running boards component has dried and is awaiting assembly. What was done was an internal frame brace. This first attempt was problematic and omscaler discarded it in favor of a laminated sheet brace. Now we are cooking. It is a good thing we can innovate on the fly. Do it on “The Very Small Railroad” all the time. It is a good thing because the top of the boiler has to have room for six components: The engine light, the smokestack, the first sand dome, the bell, the steam dome, the second sand dome and somewhere a whistle. The whistle should be no problem. The rest will be a challenge. But we will make it happen. It is what we do here on The Omega Scale Railway. And one more thing. The car upgrades including re-upgrades are done and the first turnout as well. The arduous car upgrades did give birth to a new and better design component. Such is life here on The OSR. Working along, omscaler

 

It did, and it didn’t

The planned car repairs worked somewhat well but not quite. Fortunately, our work aids speeded up everything. All but one boxcar are out of the shop. This is due to the next phase innovation in draft gear. This next design will hopefully strengthen “pulling” power. It may ease construction as well. A win-win for the OSR car shop. The shifter is still under rebuild and has a new “cosmetic” set of drive wheels. It is also getting a stronger frame design as well. And one more thing, the first turnout with the new design was followed by six with a better slide plate component and will now be getting one too. We have been very busy on “The Very Small Railroad”. Getting more done, omscaler

And more good news

Now that the module upgrades were completed, the OSR car department started on railcar running gear upgrades. The number of boxcars in the shop were eight. As of this writing, all are complete. Reporting marks were added to four with the remaining cars expected to have them shortly. The next priority is the shifter rework. After that we have a covered hopper needing repair. A work order has been submitted for two cabooses. The Mogul should be along shortly too. We will see how all this goes. Planning along, omscaler

More about the upgrades.

Last post we talked about the new tracks and turnouts. Omscaler would like to throw a little more light on what we did. The new turnouts have better geometry for better operation. This included a diverging angle so acute that the need for a radius was eliminated. The turnout mechanisms were moved to the inner area of the turnout. The new design eliminated the older lock screws. The new device looks better and more “railroady”. Moving the mechanism let us get a screw head off the passenger platform which received a “concrete patch” for appearance and safety. The locking device has a vertical tab that has been marked red on one end and green on the other. This gives us a dwarf signal though a little odd looking it may be . Omscaler is used to odd stuff on The Omega Scale Railway. It is part of OSR life. The track has been upgraded to a standard material throughout. This overcomes a previous error in off-spec material. The new tie marking method gives a neater appearance too. When the turnouts and track were complete, unfinished track-side areas received a “fill dirt” treatment. Some other places got a “gravel” tinting. Overall, the new changes have given us a more attractive home for the OSR. Enjoying the “Module Life”, omscaler

Onward and upward!

Hello again, blog readers! Our new turnouts have made life easier on The Very Small Railroad (OSR). Some tweaking was needed and some may still be ongoing. We can now move rolling stock from place to place on the module somewhat smoothly. We did the replacements in stages so as to interfere as little as possible with rail traffic movement. The new “drop-in” design went well also. The hardest part to the upgrade was in fact digging out the old turnouts and removing the old rail. A new updated utility knife purchase made this easier also. Everything that is up to the new specifications now moves smoothly. Some older equipment had improved performance too. On the other hand, some older equipment had hybrid experimental running gear with others having the original running gear. These cars were removed to the “shop” area for upgrading. As of the writing, only three have been done. Eight more need work. The shifter needs a repair as well. It looks like omscaler has his work cut out for him. We will get ‘er done, omscaler

Not yet!

A couple of posts ago omscaler said the new turnout and track upgrade “should” be in place by now. And omscaler was right. They “should” be in place by now. But, the fact is life got in the way. In order to do the quality job readers have come to expect, we had to take our time and do the job right. The new turnouts, while not perfect are indeed much smoother and much more reliable. Tweaking will be done as best we can. All the new turnouts and new replacement track have taken longer than expected. Hopefully, by the time you read this, all will be complete. And I hope all had a safe and fun Fourth of July! With patriotism and joy, omscaler